Operations

Wisconsin Clean Cities Honored for Fuel Reduction

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has acknowledged the work of Wisconsin Clean Cities (WCC) for its efforts in reducing petroleum consumption and reducing emissions in the state.

Representatives from nearly 100 Clean Cities coalitions from across the country gathered for the 2014 Clean Cities Coordinator Workshop held in Golden, Colo., Dec. 9-11.

In 2013, WCC reported nearly 12 million gallons of petroleum displacement and averted more than 55,000 tons of greenhouse gases through the deployment of alternative and renewable fuels, advanced vehicles, idle reduction, and fuel economy improvements, a 144 percent increase compared to 2012.

A major contributor to this success was the Wisconsin Clean Transportation Program (WCTP), a four-year initiative aimed to significantly reduce petroleum consumption and emissions in Wisconsin, according to WCC.

"The WCTP resulted in 19 private and 3 public alternative fueling or electric charging stations and deployed 377 vehicles on the roads of Wisconsin," said Lorrie Lisek, executive director of WCC. "The program displaced over 2.26 million gallons of petroleum between January 2010 and December 2013. These accomplishments also contributed to the National Clean Cities' major milestone in 2013 of reducing U.S. petroleum consumption by one billion gallons in a single year for the first time ever."

A move by the White House to roll back automobile fuel-efficiency targets set by the Obama administration and to challenge the right of California and other states to set stricter tailpipe emission rules faces an uphill climb.

After a court challenge stymied its efforts to give makers of glider kits a reprieve from challenged provisions of its greenhouse gas regulations, the Environmental Protection Agency has withdrawn an order to not enforce those regulations against small manufacturers of glider kits.

A federal court has granted a temporary stay that suspends the decision by the Environmental Protection Agency to not enforce for 2018 and 2019 a 300-unit production cap put in place on the manufacture of glider kits/vehicles that do not comply with Phase 2 GHG emission rules.